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PNP heads at odds
By KIT BAGAIPO, The Bohol Chronicle

Provincial police director SSupt. Edgardo Ingking has filed a complaint for grave misconduct and dishonesty against his predecessor, former Bohol police chief SSupt. Arturo Evangelista.

Evangelista, now the chief of the Regional Investigation and Detection Management Division based in Cebu City, allegedly

"[damaged] the good image of the Bohol Police Provincial Office (BPPO) and demoralized its members", Ingking's complaint stated.

This, after Evangelista made a report as contained in a memorandum to the PNP Region-7 director, stating that the Bohol police had six lapses in its operation in responding to the bloody robbery of the Bank of Commerce last August 28.

Records showed that this could be the first case in the country where PNP officials (at the rank of colonel) are in legal battle.

A move to reconcile both officials last Monday, proved futile, according to a highly placed source from the regional PNP command.

The same source told the Chronicle that only an apology from Evangelista can "settle the matter."

Ingking's complaint, which was already evaluated at the National Police Commission (Napolcom) 7, is now being forwarded to the Office of the President for presidential clearance to proceed with the summary hearing at the Napolcom en banc. Evangelista is an appointee of the president.

In its pre-charge evaluation report, Napolcom-7 ruled that Ingking's complaint is "complete in form and substance" and recommended for the filing of grave misconduct and dishonesty with aggravating circumstance of taking undue advantage of his official position against Evangelista.

Napolcom-7 however denied Ingking's petition to place Evangelista under preventive suspension pending resolution of the case.

THE COMPLAINT

Ingking likewise accused Evangelista of lying when the latter claimed in a local newspaper that he was "remembered as the creator of the now famous Bohol Tourist Police [when] in fact the said group was created and launched in 2001 by then provincial director SSupt. Sancho Bernales."

The Napolcom pre-charge investigator also found that Evangelista "occupies a sensitive position in the PNP organization" and having "prepared deliberately an unverified report that tarnishes the good image of the Bohol police as a whole?"

The documentary evidences supporting Evangelista's allegations likewise which "remained uncontroverted at this stage, are so strong and adequate to warrant the elevation of [the] case to a summary hearing or a formal investigation," the pre-charge investigation report stated.

According to the Napolcom, the report submitted by Evangelista "greatly eroded and demolished the Bohol police officers' self-esteem and self confidence they garnered from the triumphant capture of Garcia's group."

The Evangelista report "compromised the pride and integrity of the police group tantamount to maliciously intriguing against the honor and discrediting the integrity of his co-police officers" the Napolcom said.

Hence, considering Evangelista's position, the offense qualifies as grave misconduct, according to the Napolcom investigator.

The charge of dishonesty is due to the claim of Evangelista that he created the Bohol Tourist Police and failing to correct the report made in a local newspaper which has misled the public.

Having held the position of provincial police director, Evangelista should have known that the tourist police existed even before his stint, the Napolcom argued.

Once a presidential clearance is obtained, the Napolcom en banc will immediately proceed with the formal hearing of the case.

THE REPORT

According to Evangelista's report, the six lapses committed by the Bohol PNP in responding to the Bank of Commerce robbery and later to the arrest of the suspects "came from the media and those who had hands in the arrest of Casimiro "Meloy" Garcia and Gilben Nuez."

Evangelista's memorandum to the regional PNP director stated "the insufficient police visibility in Tagbilaran City to deter occurrence of hold-up cases despite other robbery incidents in the past prior to the Bank of Commerce; no specific reactive unit to respond to an incident and crisis; the police lapses can be gleaned from the fact that the suspects were able to execute their trade in broad daylight in the heart of the city and whose escape was unhampered not even by a single checkpoint in the neighboring municipalities."

The memorandum report stated further that "there was no aggressive follow-up operation as investigators following up the case could not get hint or clue [regarding the whereabouts of the suspects] not until a concerned resident called them up; the non-observance of police operating procedures and lack of supervision of elements only two non-commissioned policemen reacting to the reported presence of the suspects at the Dumaluan Beach, who did not bother to inform their chief/supervisor and allowed the security guards in the area to arrest the armed suspects inside the resort's room."

The local police also allegedly, "delayed (the) submission of sketchy report to the regional operations for information of the command group."

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